French tennis player receives seven-month ban for betting

French tennis player Constant Lestienne has been banned from competing in professional matches for seven months after being found guilty of betting in the sport.

Lestienne, who is ranked 164th in the world, has been found guilty by the Tennis Integrity Unit (TIU), who revealed that he had gambled on 220 matches between 2012 and 2015. However, none of the matches he bet on involved himself.

He has also been fined $10,000 (£7,698) for the offences.

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However, the TIU has offered the Frenchman a deal regarding his ban. According to the BBC, half of his ban will be suspended as long as he commits no further offences, and in addition, if he helps educate other young players about anti-corruption within the sport.

If he is willing to go along with the requirements, his ban could be shortened to just three months.

The TIU, which was set up in 2008 to combat betting related offences in the sport, appears to be taking a soft approach towards a player that bet on an incredible 220 matches, and it looks as if he will get off quite easy.

The 24-year-old has never won an ATP title and reached his career high rank of 164th in the world earlier this year.

He last competed earlier in September, playing in the Szczecin Challenger, where he reached the semi-final, before being beaten by Alessandro Giannessi in straight sets.

Potentially, over three months off the court could have a negative impact on Lestienne, who will look to bounce back in 2017.

However, he should also count himself lucky that the TIU have looked to take a fairly soft line, rather than making an example out of the Frenchman.

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